This invention relates to positioners in general and, more particularly, to adjustable positioners for positioning patients for medical procedures.
Many medical procedures require that a patient's body or portion thereof, such as a limb, or limbs, be positioned in a particular manner. One common method for positioning a body part is to simply have an assistant hold the body part in a desired position, and change the position when requested by the physician or surgeon. As can be appreciated this method is tiring for the assistant. In addition, this method may not support the patient's body part in a sufficiently precise and rigid manner for the medical procedure. Moreover, if more than one body part needs to be positioned, several assistants have to be utilized, which is inefficient and crowds the work area around the patient.
Other methods for positioning a body part utilize adjustable mechanical positioners. One common adjustable positioner is a sling that is attached to a body part and is connected by cables and pulleys to a ceiling, a free-standing support, or a boom extending from an operating table. These types of positioners are difficult to set up and take down, clumsy to adjust, and often obstruct the work area around the patient.
In the field of obstetrics and gynecology, a chair or table with movable leg stirrups is typically used to adjustably position the lower portion of a patient. The stirrups, however, typically have a limited range of movement and, thus, can only support the legs of a patient in a limited number of positions. Moreover, such chairs or tables are specialized and have limited utility in other medical fields.
In the field of orthopedics, a limb positioner pivotally attached to a table or chair is often used to position the arm or leg of a patient. Such a limb positioner, however, has a limited range of movement and, thus, can only support the arm or leg of a patient in a limited number of positions. Moreover, only one such limb positioner can typically be used at a time, thereby preventing a plurality of limbs from being positioned at one time.
Based on the foregoing, there is a need in the art for an improved method and apparatus for positioning patients for medical procedures, wherein the apparatus is easy to set up and take down, can support a plurality of limbs in an infinite number of positions, is simple to adjust, does not obstruct the work area around the patient, and can be used in a variety of medical fields. The present invention is directed to such a method and apparatus.